Arthur's choice
by klayn
Summary: My take on what would happen if Arthur overheard Merlin outing himself to Uther's ghost.
1. Arthur Overhears

A loud crash startled Arthur into consciousness. He blinked, and was about to get up, when he heard Uther say, "You have magic."

Arthur wondered *who* had magic, and resolved to execute whomever did as soon as possible, but his thoughts were interrupted by Merlin yelling in a pained voice, "I was *born with it!"

Merlin? Silly, clumsy, useless Merlin had magic? Impossible, Arthur thought.

Uther was talking again. "I made you Arthur's servant," he said. "You are a sorcerer!"

"Even while you were king, there was magic at the heart of Camelot," replied Merlin, in a strangely triumphant tone of voice.

Arthur could hear Merlin and Uther arguing, but he was too busy with his own thoughts to pay them much attention. His feelings were nothing but rage- rage that Merlin, his last, most trusted confidant, had been lying to him all these years. All the other betrayals he'd suffered- Morgana's, Agravaine's, Lancelot's, and Gwen's- were nothing compared to this. He had trusted Merlin with some of his greatest secrets and feelings, and Merlin had been deceiving Arthur all this time.

However, logically, he could understand why Merlin would lie about this. After all, magic was still outlawed in Camelot. Revealing his secret would cost him his life. Arthur knew this, but that knowledge only lessed his anger, not got rid of it completely.

By the time felt less like executing Merlin and more like grilling him for hours about any other secrets he may have, Arthur noticed that the room was silent. He looked around the room and realized that Merlin and Uther had left. Some instinct drove him out of the room to the armory, where he rounded the door just in time to see Uther extending his sword towards Merlin.

"Father!", he called, and Uther turned around. Arthur stood there for a few seconds, locked in internal debate, then held up the horn. Uther stepped away from Merlin, lowering his sword, his expression scared. "Arthur, no," he whispered. "Please. Whatever I've done, I've done- for Camelot."

"You've had your turn," Arthur replied. "Now it's mine." He lowered the horn to his mouth.

"Merlin has-" Uther had started to speak, but his sentence turned into a wordless scream as Arthur blew the horn and Uther finally disappeared.

Arthur lowered the horn from his mouth, and fought to hold back the tears in his eyes.


	2. Arthur's Dilemma

Arthur sat in his room, lost in thought. It had been hours after he and Merlin had confronted Uther- hours since Merlin revealed he had magic- and Arthur didn't know what to do. A voice in his head that sounded like Uther's kept on saying things like magic is evil, magic corrupts, and no magic user should be trusted. Another voice, however, was saying that Merlin had been here for eight years, and Arthur was still alive and healthy. That voice presented memories to him- memories of Merlin asking Arthur if he knew how many times he'd saved Arthur's life, memories of Merlin saying he'd protect Arthur as long as he's alive. That voice reasoned that if Merlin had wanted him dead, he wouldn't even have to do anything- he literally could have done nothing, and Arthur would have been dead long ago. However, as long as Uther had been alive, he had been drilling into Arthur's head that magic was evil, and it was hard to counteract a lifetime of believing this.

Arthur sighed. He knew Merlin didn't think he knew about his secret- or maybe secrets. Who knew what else Merlin was hiding from him? Wait...Gaius would probably know. Maybe he should visit Gaius and ask him for advice. Resolving to visit Gaius in the morning, Arthur decided to go to sleep.

* * *

Arthur knocked on the door of Gaius's chamber. Gaius's voice called out, "One minute!". A few moments later, Gaius opened the door, and said, "Ah, Your Majesty. Come in."

"Can I- sit here?", asked Arthur, indicating the table. "Of course," said Gaius. "Now, what's your problem?"

"It's- it's about Merlin."

"What about him?"

"Gaius- I *know* about him, okay? I overheard him telling my father."

Gaius looked shocked. "What exactly did you hear him telling your father?"

"That he has magic," Arthur replied.

"Oh," said Gaius. "And what are you going to do about it? Because let me tell you something, Sire- if you kill Merlin, you will be as good as signing your death warrant."

"That's the thing, Gaius- I have absolutely no clue what to do," said Arthur. "On the one hand, I know I can't execute him- I need him too much, both as a person and as a sorcerer-"

"Warlock," said Gaius.

"What?"

"He's a warlock, not a sorcerer," replied Gaius. Seeing the question on Arthur's face, he said, "He was born with magic- he was able to use it before he started forming memories, something that no other person I've heard of can do. Sorcerers and sorceresses have to study magic- he doesn't. In a way, he *is* magic- he's the most powerful magic-user to ever live. But sorry, you were saying?"

"I know I can't execute him, but my whole life, I've been taught that magic and its users are evil, and I've seen enough to make this seem true. But Merlin's been here in Camelot all this time, and I'm still alive and healthy. I just don't know what to do, Gaius. Could you help me?"

"I..." Gaius seemed shocked at Arthur's blatant question, but after a few seconds, he seemed to recover. "Of course, Sire, but I have to warn you, I might be a bit prejudiced."

"Why?", asked Arthur.

"Because I was once a magic user myself," said Gaius. "And I care for Merlin; I would do almost anything to help him. It would be better, Sire, if you were to talk to other people."

"But who would I talk to?" replied Arthur.

"You could talk to me," came Gwaine's voice from behind Arthur.


	3. Gwaine

Arthur turned around, startled. Gwaine stood in the doorway, a determined expression on his face.

"Gwaine, what are you doing here?", asked Gaius. "Do you need something?"

"I just want to talk with the Princess about Merlin," said Gwaine.

"So you heard us talking?", said Gaius.

"Yeah," Gwaine replied. "I've had my suspicions of him for a while now. You guys just confirmed them."

"So what do you think I should do?", asked Arthur, as Gwaine walked into the room and sat down.

Gwaine paused. "I've seen a lot of things in my travels," he finally said. "Most of them bars, I'm not going to deny, but other things too. One of the things I saw was a small country. The interesting thing about this country was that magic wasn't illegal there. And the country- it was prospering. People there seemed happy, and normal. Think about that for a second."

"Are you suggesting that I legalize magic?", said Arthur.

"Well...yeah," said Gwaine. "Think about the advantages- whenever Morgana or some evil magic-user attacked us, we'd be able to defend ourselves with relative ease-"

"Relative ease?", said Arthur.

"Yes," said Gaius. "I told you, Merlin is incredibly powerful. If he didn't have to use magic behind people's backs, he'd be able to do so much more for you and this kingdom."

"Yeah," said Gwaine. "There is that advantage. But there are others, too- if magic wasn't illegal, the number of magic-users trying to kill you would probably lessen. They're only trying to kill you because you'd try to kill them."

"That's also true," said Gaius. "Personally, if I were able to practice magic again, healing would be a bit quicker and easier. Science has proved to be a good cure, but with problems of magical origins, it doesn't do much good."

"Okay," said Arthur. "You've both given me a lot to think about, so I'm going to go and do that." Having said that, he left the room.

Gwaine and Gaius were silent for a while after Arthur left. Finally Gaius turned to Gwaine and raised an eyebrow. Gwaine shrugged, and said, "What?"

"That land you were talking about...you made it up."

"Yeah," said Gwaine. "But the Princess doesn't have to know that."


	4. What other secrets do you have?

Just as Gwaine was about to leave Gaius's room, Merlin entered, carrying two trays of lunch. "Aww, you didn't get one for me?" Gwaine said plaintively. Merlin set the trays down, and said, "I didn't know you were coming for lunch."

"True," said Gwaine. "I wasn't planning on it, but I think I'll survive," he said with a smile.

While Gaius and Merlin were eating, Gwaine examined his friend. He had always thought there was something more to Merlin than he let on, and now that he knew...well, it probably explained how someone so superficially useless managed to survive for as long as he had. Merlin certainly didn't look like the most powerful magic-user ever, but then again, Arthur didn't look like the princess he really was either.

When Gaius and Merlin were finished eating, Gwaine said, "So, Merlin, how long have you been using magic?"

Merlin jumped in shock, and Gwaine chuckled. Merlin recovered, and said, "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean I know you have magic, Merlin, and I was wondering how long you've been using it."

Merlin turned to look at Gaius, who was wearing an expression of reassurance. Merlin walked over to where Gwaine was sitting, and said, "Since before I can remember. My mum said that I'd levitate my cradle when I was still in it. Why d'you ask?"

"Because I'm curious about you," replied Gwaine. "I always thought there was something more to you than you were letting on, and I've just had my suspicions confirmed. Is there anything else about you that I should know?"

"Well...what do you know about me?" said Merlin.

"I know you have magic, and I know you're protecting Arthur," replied Gwaine. "But...that's about it."

Merlin smiled. "Well...do you remember a few years ago? You, Elyan, Perceval and Leon confronted an old sorcerer, and he beat you."

"Yeah," Gwaine replied. "Wait...how did you know about that? You weren't there."

Merlin smiled. Gwaine was confused, then a thought hit him. "You?", he asked.

"Yep," replied Merlin.

"But how?", asked Gwaine.

"Ageing spell," Merlin said with a smile. "I needed to create a disguise that would allow me to use magic, and Arthur couldn't tell it was me if I was eighty years old, so I created Dragoon the Great. Anything else you want to know?"


	5. Gwen

"Arthur?"

Arthur blinked and straightened in his chair. "Yes?" he replied.

"Is something the matter?" asked Gwen.

Arthur sighed. Should he tell Gwen that Merlin had magic? Maybe he shouldn't mention that it was Merlin. "How would you feel if someone you've known for a very long time has magic? And it's not something they can help- they were born with it. And they've obviously been keeping it a secret from you- how would you feel? What would you do?"

Arthur could hear Gwen walking over, then felt her hands on his shoulders. Gwen was silent for a while, then said, "If it's something they're truly born with, then I think it'd be foolish to punish them for it." She paused. "Arthur...who is it?"

Arthur lowered his head. "Can you promise me you won't react negatively?" he asked.

"Yes," replied Gwen.

"It's Merlin," said Arthur.

"Merlin?" Gwen said in shocked tone of voice. "Merlin has magic?"

"I heard him say it myself," said Arthur. "Gaius confirmed it."

"I can't believe it," Gwen murmured. "All this time, he's been hiding it..."

"I scarcely could either," replied Arthur. "But think about it- there's always been something... *different* about him."

"True," Gwen said. "But...magic. It's hard to believe." She was silent for moment, then said, "So what are you going to do?"

"Gwaine argued for legalizing magic," replied Arthur. "I know I can't kill him- he's a friend, no matter that he has magic, and Gaius said that if I did kill him, I'd be as good as dead- he's apparently been protecting me all these years. But I don't know how well people would take the news or my attempt to legalize magic- for almost three decades the people have heard and believed that magic is evil. Legalizing magic, or instating Merlin as the Court Sorcerer might not be popular decisions."

"Well, no matter what, you shouldn't stay up all night thinking about it," said Gwen. "You need your sleep."


	6. The talk

"Will that be all, Sire?" Merlin asked.

"Actually, Merlin," said Arthur, "I'd like to talk to you. Sit down somewhere."

Merlin set the clothes down on a chair, trying to push down the ominous feeling Arthur's words had given him. He walked over to the table and sat next to Arthur. "What did you want, Sire?"

"Merlin...look- I overheard you telling my father that you have magic."

Merlin was shocked. He was sure Arthur had been unconscious when he revealed his magic to Uther's ghost. However, he realized that Arthur was still speaking.  
"...excuses you make, Gaius confirmed it, and frankly, I'm curious."

"Curious about what?"

"About you. What you can do, what other secrets you have, what you have done- I want to know it."

Merlin was silent. Arthur didn't seem like he was going to have him executed, and was giving him a perfect opportunity to let the weight of years of secrets and lies off his chest. Merlin sighed, then straightened in his seat. "If you want to hear it all, Sire, make sure you can afford to spend at least the whole morning doing nothing. There's a lot to say."

"Then start saying it," Arthur replied.

"Well...firstly, other secrets. I take it you know I was born with magic, so really, my only other secret is that I'm a dragonlord."

"How?" Arthur interrupted. "Balinor was the last dragonlord."

"Dragonlord powers pass from father to son upon the death of the father," replied Merlin.

A memory rose in Arthur's mind- him telling Merlin that no man worth his tears. "Merlin...I told you not to cry over your father's death."

Merlin shrugged. "I can't really blame you- you didn't know."

Arthur nodded, still feeling awkward. "So- you're a dragonlord. What can you do?"

"I can command dragons and their kin," replied Merlin. "I- actually, you didn't kill the Great Dragon, Sire."

"Then who did? You?"

"No. He's not dead- I ordered him to leave Camelot after you had been knocked out."

"So the Great Dragon is alive."

"Yes."

"What about Morgana's dragon? Did you have anything do to with that?"

"His name is Aithusa, and yes. I stole the dragon egg from the tomb of Ashkenar and hatched it. I don't know how Morgana got her hands on Aithusa though."

"Okay," said Arthur. "You were born with magic, you're a dragonlord. Any other secrets, or can we move on to what you can do?"

"There's one more," replied Merlin. "Come on- I think I'll show you."


	7. Dragoon the Great

Merlin got up and hurried out of the room, with Arthur following. As they were walking, Merlin started talking. "You remember when Gwen was accused of planting a poultice in your room to make you fall in love with her? Well, it was actually Morgana who did it- she wanted Gwen out of the way so she could become Queen. I couldn't let Gwen die, so I decided to make another sorcerer take the blame."

"How did you get another person to do that?" asked Arthur.

"You'll see," Merlin replied cryptically.

They finally reached Gaius's chambers. Merlin opened the door and walked in, holding it open for Arthur. Gaius was there, making some sort of potion. "Good morning, Sire," said Gaius, bowing. "Merlin, what are you doing?"

"I'm showing something to Arthur," replied Merlin. "This is how I made another person take the blame for Gwen." He paused, then spoke. "Miht dagan, beþecce me. Adeadaþ þisne gast min freondum ond min feondum." As he said the last word, Merlin's eyes flashed gold, and there was an small explosion. When the smoke cleared, Dragoon the Great was standing where Merlin had been. "What do you think?" he said.

"I knew I recognized your eyes!" exclaimed Arthur.

Dragoon- Merlin- smiled. "Yes, yes, very good, Arthur-"

Arthur interrupted Merlin. "But- why did you have to be Dragoon? Couldn't you just have performed magic as yourself?"

"That would have been highly stupid," replied Merlin. "The point was to create a disguise where I could use magic openly, hence the aging spell. I had planned on being caught then turning back to my regular age, so that everyone would think that the sorcerer had escaped and I could get back to my duties."

"Why didn't you?" asked Arthur. "You were an old man up until the last minute."

"I tried reversing the spell, but I initially couldn't- I had to use a potion Gaius created. Speaking of which...Edniwe min geoguð!" There was another explosion, and Merlin was back to normal. "Anyway- I grew better at reversing the spell the more I used it."

"When else did you use it? Aside from the time you used it to kill my father."

"Firstly, I didn't mean to kill him. Agravaine put an amulet on him that would reverse any healing spell that was cast. Secondly...I used it to destroy the fomorrah that Morgana was using to control me, and I used it to plant an enchanted poppet in Morgana's room when she and Helios took over the castle. You remember she couldn't cast any spells? That was because of the poppet."

"Yes, I remember...you said you used it to destroy the fu-"

"Fomorrah," Merlin interrupted. "Morgana captured me, and put a fomorrah head in my neck to control me. The fomorrah would wipe my mind blank except for a single thought- Morgana tried to make me kill you. Luckily, Gaius was able to paralyze the fomorrah and restore my mind, and I destroyed the mother beast."

"And that's it?"

"That's it for all the times I've used the spell," said Merlin. "What do you want me to talk about next?"


	8. Emrys

Arthur sat down, lost in thought. There were so many questions running through his head, and he didn't know which one to pick. Finally, he said, "You said you've saved my life many times. How many?"

"Honestly, Sire, I've lost count. There's just been to many to even remember."

"Ah," replied Arthur. "Well...who else knows you have magic?"

Merlin paused, then said, "My mum and Gaius, obviously, and Kilgarrah, and-

"Who's Kilgarrah?" interrupted Arthur.

"The Great Dragon," replied Merlin. "Balinor told me his name. Anyway, as of now, you and Gwaine know, and I think that's it. Anyone else who knew is dead."

Arthur reached over and clapped Merlin on the shoulder. "No one else?"

"Well, various magic users in Albion," said Merlin. "But you wouldn't know them."

"Does Morgana know?" asked Arthur.

Merlin smiled. "She doesn't," he said. "She thinks I'm just an ordinary man."

"She knows about Dragoon, doesn't she?"

"She knows him, yes, but she doesn't know it's me. She's very scared of Dragoon, which is useful."

"Why? No offense, Dragoon doesn't seem scary."

"She knows him as Emrys, who is her doom and destiny."

"Emrys?"

"It's what the druids call me," said Merlin. "Emrys is referred to in prophecies about the Once and Future King. They say that the King and Emrys will unite Albion and free  
magic."

"So who's the Once and Future King?"

"You, Prat," replied Merlin. "It's why I've stuck with you and protected you all these years. I believe in the future you'll build."

"The future *we* will build," said Arthur, grasping Merlin's arm.


	9. Questions and Concerns

Arthur released Merlin's arm, and after a few seconds of silence, Gaius spoke. "Sire, what are your plans regarding telling people about Merlin?"

"I hadn't really thought about that," said Arthur slowly. "Merlin, what do you want to do?"

Merlin was silent for a few moments, then said, "I think I'd like to tell my friends personally. After that, you can make an announcement, but my friends deserve to hear the truth from me."

"When you say friends, you mean..."

"The rest of the original Round Table- Perceval, Elyan, Leon, and Gwen."

"Ah...Merlin, um- I've actually told Gwen already."

"Oh. How did she take it?"

"Pretty well, I think. She didn't quite believe it- she still might not- but she doesn't think you should be killed."

"So, only three people to tell then," said Merlin. "Would I be allowed to interrupt their training to tell them now?"

"I think you should tell them after they're done," said Arthur. "What you can do is go tell them to come up here after they finish."

* * *

When Merlin came back, Gaius was puttering around, and Arthur was sitting with a bored expression on his face. "What took you so long?" he asked.

"It took me a while to find Perceval," said Merlin. "But the three of them will be coming here after training is done. In the meantime, do you have any more questions?"

"Your friend Will. He lied about being a sorcerer, didn't he?"

"He did," replied Merlin. "He was taking the blame, because he didn't want to see you hurt me, and he was dying anyway." He paused, then said, "You know, I was going to tell you. About me. But I never got the chance to."

"Ah," said Arthur, and he and Merlin fell into silence. After a while, Arthur blurted out, "Morgana doesn't know you have magic. Why?"

"I never told her," said Merlin.

"But why not? You both have magic," replied Arthur.

"Because people told me not to," said Merlin. "Arthur, what are you going to do about Morgana?"

"What do you mean?"

"I could kill her," said Merlin. "I'm more powerful than she is, and she'd be out of our hair for good. And I know she's your sister, but she wants you dead. So what should I do?"


	10. Coming out

"I...don't know," said Arthur. "You could kill her?"

"Easily," replied Merlin. "I wouldn't even have to kill her magically. So what should I do?"

Arthur sat back in the chair and considered Merlin's question. On the one hand, Morgana was really the last family member he had, but on the other hand, she'd tried to kill him multiple times, so getting rid of her would give him some measure of peace from her.

While he was thinking, the door opened and Leon, Perceval, and Elyan came in and sat down next Merlin and Arthur. After a few moments, Leon said, "You wanted to see us, Sire?"

"Yes," said Arthur, coming back to the present. "Merlin has something to tell you."

The trio turned expectantly towards Merlin, who was shooting Arthur a glare. Turning to face them, he said, "Um...I- I have magic."

The disbelief must have been showing on their faces, because Merlin said, "You don't believe me."

"No offense, Merlin, but is this your idea of a joke?" asked Leon. "It's not very funny."

"It's not a joke," said Merlin. His eyes flashed gold, and a flame appeared in his palm. "Does this look like a joke to you?"

The knights looked torn. On the one hand, this was magic, which was punishable by death. On the other hand, Arthur had done nothing, plus the person wielding the magic was Merlin, not some random stranger.

Arthur finally spoke. "At ease," he said. "Merlin, put that flame out, Leon, Elyan, Perceval, it's okay."

"With all due respect, Sire, *how* is it okay?" asked Leon. "Magic- it's magic."

"It's magic that has been used to help me ever since Merlin got here," replied Arthur. "Like I said, it's okay."

"It's true," came Gaius's voice. "Merlin saved my life the very first day he got here. He won't harm you."

"How many times *have* you used magic?" asked Perceval incredulously.

"More times than I can remember," replied Merlin.

After Perceval, Elyan, and Leon were finished asking Merlin questions, they left.

"Well, that's done," said Merlin.

"Now we just have to figure out how to tell the rest of Camelot," said Arthur.

* * *

Do you guys think I should have Merlin eventually kill Morgana?


	11. The issue at hand

Merlin walked into Arthur's chambers, holding Arthur's dinner. Arthur and Gwen were sitting at the table, talking to each other, but looked up when Merlin entered. Arthur's face broke into a grin. "Ah, Merlin- just the man we wanted to see. Come on, sit down," he said, indicating a chair next to him. Merlin walked over, put the food on the table, and sat down.

"Now, Merlin," said Arthur, his voice muffled by the piece of chicken in his mouth, "Gwen and I were just discussing how to tell the people of Camelot about our new policy on magic."

"We thought you'd like some input too, seeing as you're the main reason we're doing this," added Gwen.

"Oh," said Merlin. "Well...I think maybe you should try to change the law first, and tell people about that."

"The problem with that is that the nobles wouldn't support it," said Arthur.

"Well, what if we didn't entirely legalize it?" asked Gwen. "Like, we could just make it illegal to perform harmful magic."

"That could work," said Merlin slowly. "Honestly- most of the executions of magic-users are done on people who were only trying to heal someone, or help crops grow. If  
you let people perform small magics like those, it would take away a lot of resentment against you."

"Gwen, that's a brilliant idea," said Arthur. "I'll have a council meeting tomorrow and tell the nobles about this change."

"Thank you, Arthur," said Merlin. "This- you have no idea how much this means to me, that you're accepting magic."

Arthur paused, lost for words, then nodded and clasped Merlin's arm. When he released it, he said, "There's also one more thing we wanted to discuss- making you the official Court Sorcerer."

Merlin shook his head. "Maybe later, but not now."

"Why not now?" asked Gwen.

"Because if it's a public announcement, people will know," said Merlin. "And that knowledge might reach ears that I don't want it to reach, like- Morgana. Right now, I'd rather just have the freedom to work out of people's notice."

"Very well, then," said Arthur. "You can just pretend that your only role is being my manservant. However, I expect you to do all you can to keep Gwen and I safe."

"I already do, Sire," said Merlin. He paused, then said, "I need to go talk to someone now. If you'll excuse me?"

"Of course," replied Arthur. Merlin got up and left.


	12. Mordred

_Mordred!_ Merlin called out mentally as he walked to his room. _Where are you?_

_I'm training, Emrys_, came the reply.

_Come to Gaius's chambers_, said Merlin. _We need to talk_.

A few minutes after he Gaius's room, Mordred walked in, covered in dirt and sweat and wearing his armor.

Merlin gestured toward a seat next to him, and Mordred walked over and sat down. They stared at each other in silence for a while.

_Why did you call me?_ Mordred asked mentally.

Merlin looked down, ran his hand through his hair, and looked back up. _Arthur knows I have magic_, he said. _And so do others_. At Mordred's worried look, Merlin added, _They don't know about you- that's actually why I wanted to talk to you. Do you feel that other people should know?_

_Yes. No. I don't know_, replied Mordred. _I like being a knight, but I am also a Druid_.

_I'll let you think about it_, said Merlin._ But keep in mind, Mordred- Arthur made me promise to protect him. If anything, or anyone, endangers him, I will make sure the threat is eliminated._

_I understand, Emrys_, replied Mordred._ Is that all?_

_Yes_, said Merlin.

Mordred got up and left, leaving Merlin lost in thought. Had he done the right thing?


	13. Kilgarrah

After Mordred left, Merlin spent a while thinking. Finally, he decided to talk to the one creature he knew could help him- Kilgarrah. He got up and left the room, walking through the castle to the entrance to the Darkling Woods. On the way there, he summoned Kilgarrah.

When he got to the clearing in the woods, Kilgarrah was just landing. "Hello, Merlin," he said. "To what do I owe the honor of seeing you again?"

"Arthur knows I have magic," said Merlin. "So do a few other people in Camelot."

"And I take it they reacted well?"

"Yes," replied Merlin. "Arthur was even talking of legalizing magic."

"That's very good news- but you're troubled. What's the problem?"

"Mordred," said Merlin. "I told him Arthur knows I have magic, but I haven't told Arthur that Mordred is another magic-user. I just don't know what to do about him, Kilgarrah."

"I am afraid, young warlock, that I can't help you with this," replied Kilgarrah. "But I can give you some news- I have felt a shift in the future, and the threat the druid boy poses is no longer as great as it once was. That does not mean it is gone entirely, but it has lessened."

"Thank you, Kilgarrah," said Merlin. Kilgarrah nodded his head and took off into the night sky.

* * *

Should I include the evil!Gwen plotline in this, or should I just have Merlin swoop in on Kilgarrah and burn the Dark Tower to the ground before Gwen undergoes the Tiene Diaga?


	14. AN

Hi everyone,

So this morning my computer screen broke. Because of this, I can't really do any computer-related activities, which includes updating my fics. Therefore, I will be suspending updates until my computer is fixed, which may be in about 2-3 weeks. I am very sorry about this, but such is life.

Have fun,

Miriam


	15. Mithian

Merlin sat in his room, lost in thought. The arrival of Mithian and her maid last night had sent the whole castle into a tizzy, and her account of what had happened to her and her father had been horrifying. However, Merlin wasn't entirely sure that Mithian was actually telling the truth.

It had taken him a while to pick up on it, but Merlin had realized this morning that there was the distinct air of active magic around Mithian and her maid. The only question was, who was using the magic? It probably wasn't Mithian, so that left Hilda, the old maid.

A thought suddenly struck Merlin. He quickly exited his room and went into Gaius's, finding Gaius just about ready to get into bed.

"Gaius, I think Hilda might not be as old as she seems," said Merlin.

Gaius lifted the Eyebrow of Doom. "What do you mean, Merlin?" he asked.

"An ageing spell!" said Merlin. "Gaius, I could sense that there was magic being used by Mithian or her maid. An ageing spell would certainly explain the constant presence of magic, and maybe even why Mithian is scared."

"Merlin, while that is a valid theory, it's late," said Gaius. "And I wish to go to sleep."

"Okay," replied Merlin, turning around and going back up to his room.

* * *

"Sire, can we talk?"

Arthur replied, "About what, Merlin?"

Merlin's answer shocked him. "I have reason to believe that Mithian's maid is a magic-user," he said.

"And- you know this how?" asked Arthur.

"I could feel it," replied Merlin. Arthur made an unamused expression, and Merlin continued, "When there's a spell or enchantment being used, I can sense it- it's like a presence in my mind. I felt such a presence surrounding Mithian and her maid, and I know Mithian can't use magic, so that leaves the maid."

"Are you sure?" said Arthur.

"Positive," answered Merlin.

"So what does this change?" asked Arthur.

"Everything," said Merlin. "It could mean that Mithian did not tell the truth yesterday."

"And is there any way to determine the truth?"

"I could use a truth spell," said Merlin. "They're easy enough, and cause no damage. I'd probably have to find a way to get her alone."

"I can get her alone," said Arthur. "You do the rest."


	16. The truth, part 1

Merlin and Arthur decided to get Mithian to meet with them in Gaius's room. Merlin went off to the throne room while Arthur went to find Mithian. He eventually found her in her room, sitting and staring out the window while her maid kept an eye on her.

"Good morning, Princess Mithian," he said.

"Good morning to you too, Your Majesty," Mithian replied.

"Would you mind joining me for a walk?" asked Arthur. "It is a beautiful day out, is it not?"

"It is," Mithian replied, and got up. Her maid started to rise, but Arthur quickly turned to her and said, "Why don't you take this opportunity to rest? Surely you must be tired after fleeing from Nemeth."

The maid looked angry for a second, but nodded, saying to Mithian, "Remember to stay safe, Princess."

"I will, don't worry," replied Mithian, and Arthur escorted her out the door.

Once they were a fair distance away from the room, Arthur turned to Mithian and said, "I'm afraid that we're not actually going on a walk, Princess, but I had to come up with some excuse to get you out of your maid's company."

"Wh-where are we going?" said Mithian in a scared voice.

"We're going to Gaius's chambers," replied Arthur. "He's the Court Physician."

Once they got to the room, Arthur opened the door and ushered Mithian inside. Merlin was sitting on a stool, a large book open on his lap, which he closed as the door opened.

"Please sit," said Arthur, gesturing to a chair opposite Merlin's. "Merlin, tell Princess Mithian what's going on."

Mithian went over to the chair as Arthur closed and locked the door. He turned around to see Merlin's eyes flash gold. Mithian looked startled, but Arthur asked, "What was that for?"

"I just blocked the room from being spyed on," replied Merlin. "No one except for the people in this room will be able to see or hear what's going on. Speaking of which..." he turned to Mithian. "I'm going to perform a simple truth spell on you, Your Majesty," he said. "Is that okay?"

"But I told the truth yesterday!" Mithian exclaimed.

"If you did, then you have nothing to worry about," replied Merlin. "But given that your maid hiding behind an ageing spell, I have reason to suspect that not all is as it seems. So may I perform the spell on you?"

"You may," Mithian said eventually.


	17. The truth, part 2

"ábir sóþ!" said Merlin, and his eyes flashed gold.

Mithian blinked, then started talking. "King Odin and Morgana Pendragon overtook Nemeth," she said. "Morgana made me flee with her to Camelot. She's disguised as my maid, Hilda. She wants you to go to the tomb where my father is being held captive so Odin can kill you."

Merlin was shocked, but hid his surprise well. Arthur, however, didn't- after gaping for a few seconds at Mithian, his face became angry and he said, "Morgana will pay for this."  
Merlin immediately ran towards towards the door, getting there before Arthur. "Arthur, listen to me," he said. "You can't go against Morgana now."

"Why not?" Arthur growled.

"Because she's got magic on her side, and you don't," replied Merlin.

Arthur sagged at the reminder. "Then what are we to do?" he asked.

"I'll take care of it," said Merlin coldly, and left the room.

* * *

Merlin walked through the castle, heading towards the guest chambers Mithian was staying in. When he got there, the door was closed. Merlin felt the presence of the ageing spell Morgana was using, so he quietly knocked on the door.

He heard footsteps getting closer, and the door opened. "May I come in?" he asked.

Morgana's face showed some surprise. "If you want to talk to the Princess, she isn't here," she said.

"That's okay," said Merlin, and entered the room. "I want to have a word with you."

"What is it?" asked Morgana.

"Ástríce!" Merlin said as his eyes flashed gold. Morgana went flying through the room to hit the wall, where she slumped unconscious.

Merlin smiled, and his eyes flashed again. Morgana rose up into the air, and Merlin walked out of the room, Morgana floating behind him.


	18. Binding

Merlin walked back to Gaius's room, Morgana floating behind him. Without Morgana consciously sustaining it, the ageing spell was wearing off, so that Morgana was back to her normal appearance and age by the time Merlin got back to Gaius's chambers.

He entered and his eyes flashed gold. Morgana floated over to a cot, where she was laid down on, and Merlin pulled up a chair next to her.

The room was silent for a few seconds, before Arthur said, "Now what?"

Merlin looked up at Arthur. "She'll wake up in a while," he said. "There is something I could do in the meantime that could bind her magic."

"You could?" asked Mithian timidly.

Merlin shrugged. "I've done it before," he replied. "The spell itself is easy enough, but sustaining it against someone as powerful as Morgana could be a bit hard."

"Why?" asked Arthur.

"It's a matter of magical stregnth," said Merlin. "Imagine you're trying to hold a door closed. If force that's trying to open the door is stronger than you, the door will open. The same principle applies here. I would be effectively pushing against Morgana's magic, which would require greater magical strength than her."

"Is it strength that you have?" Arthur asked.

"Sort of," replied Merlin. "I can suppress her magic in this way for a while, but not forever."

"Is there anything that you can do to suppress her magic permanently?"

"Kilgarrah might know something," said Merlin. "I'll go talk to him later. For now, I'll use the spell."

Merlin quickly crafted a poppet. When he was finished, he said, "Ontende eallne þæs drycræftes hire sawle!"

The poppet burst into flames. When it was finished burning, Merlin placed it under the cot Morgana was on.

"So it's done?" asked Arthur.

"For now," replied Merlin. "There are still some things we need to discuss."


	19. Imprisonment

The first thing Morgana realized as she was waking up was that her head hurt. She opened her eyes to see that she was in a prison cell, and she smirked. She muttered "Tospringe!"

Nothing happened. She extended her hand, and said "Tospringe!" again, putting as much force as she could into the spell.

The cell door remained still. Morgana glanced around the cell, panic rising in her, but forced herself to calm down. The last time this had happened, whatever had been trapping her magic had worn off after a while, so she should just be patient. She sat down on the cot and tried to remember how she got there. A quick look at herself revealed that the ageing spell had worn off, so anyone who saw her would know who she was.

Try as she might, however, she couldn't remember what had happened. The last thing she remembered was Mithian entering a room that was magically shielded, cutting off her Sight. So someone here at Camelot had magic, and was actively using it. She wondered if Arthur knew.

"Hello, Morgana."

Morgana whirled around in shock to see Merlin standing outside the cell. "Hello, Merlin," she replied, a smirk re-forming on her face. "It's *so* nice to see you."

"I wish I could say the same," he said, his expression grave, then walked over to the cell door. "May I come in?"

"I could just come out," Morgana said.

"By all means, come out, then," replied Merlin.

Morgana extended her hand. "Tospringe!" she cried again, but the cell door, again, remained immobile.

"Looks like you can't," said Merlin. "Kind of a pity- I honestly thought that you were powerful enough that suppressing your magic would be hard, but it really isn't."

"What do you mean?" asked Morgana, fear coloring her voice.

"I mean," replied Merlin, "that I'm suppressing your magic."

Morgana sneered. "The only person who can do that is Emrys," she said. "And you're not him."

Merlin smiled. "Are you absolutely sure?" he said.

"Emrys is an old man," replied Morgana. "You're nothing but a manservant."

"Miht dagan, beþecce me. Adeadaþ þisne gast min freondum ond min feondum!" There was a flash, and when her eyes cleared, Emrys was standing where Merlin had been, wearing  
the same clothes.

Morgana instinctively moved backwards, fear spiking in her as Emrys smiled menacingly. "So Morgana," he said, "are you absolutely sure I don't have magic?"


	20. Morgana learns

Merlin smirked at the fear and shock on Morgana's face. However, his smirk faded as Morgana's eyes rolled back and she collapsed, seemingly unconscious. Merlin quickly opened the cell door and walked over to Morgana, then felt for a pulse. After a few seconds, he figured that the shock must have been to much for her to handle. He placed her on the cot and muttered, "Ic ácwice þé," his eyes flashing gold.

Morgana blinked and opened her eyes. Her expression was confused for a second before she realized what had just happened, at which point it grew angry. Merlin just stood there, watching her.

Morgana noticed the cell door was open, and started to make a dash for it. Merlin's eyes flashed again, and the cell door slammed shut. Morgana grasped onto the bars and shook them, but to no avail. After a few seconds, she sat down on the floor, her back to Merlin.

Merlin quickly muttered "Edniwe min geoguð", and turned back to his normal age. Neither of them spoke for a while, until Merlin said, "Why don't you sit on the cot? The floor can't be comfortable."

"Why would you care about my comfort?" Morgana replied angrily.

"Because I have no interest in seeing you in pain," said Merlin. "Besides, you're already suffering a lot already."

Morgana didn't reply, but did get up and move back to the cot, where she sat facing Merlin. The two of them were silent for a while, before Morgana asked, "Why did you do this?"

"Do what?"

"Bind my magic."

"Because your access to it would place Arthur in danger," said Merlin. "And I won't allow that. Not any more."

"So you think that just because you're using magic to protect Arthur, he won't kill you?" Morgana sneered.

"I do," replied Merlin.

They were silent once more, before Merlin got up from the wall he was leaning against and walked out of the door. He started walking away, before he turned around and said, "If it's any consolation, I'll try to make sure Arthur doesn't execute you." With that, he walked away.

* * *

So I'm thinking that in the next chapter or so, Merlin talks to Kilgarrah, who tells him that the Eancanah can get rid of Morgana's magic. How does that outcome sound by you guys?


	21. Merlin's dilemma

Merlin spent the walk to the kitchens and then to Arthur's chambers thinking. He didn't want to kill Morgana, but he couldn't contain her magic forever, and he didn't know anything that could get rid of her magic permanently. There was a chance that Kilgarrah knew, but the dragon had also told Merlin multiple times to kill Morgana.

"You're silent today," came Arthur's voice, breaking Merlin out of his thoughts. He looked at Arthur to see him staring back, an expression of curiousity on his face. "What's the problem?"

"I don't know what to do about Morgana," replied Merlin. "The easiest solution would no doubt be to just have her executed, but I don't want to have to kill another magic-user."

"What else could you do?" asked Arthur.

"There might be a way to permanently bind her magic," replied Merlin. "It would make her a much smaller threat, but I have no clue if it can actually be done."

"Would Gaius know?"

"Probably not," said Merlin, "but Kilgarrah might."

* * *

When Merlin got to the meadow, Kilgarrah was already there. "Greetings, young warlock," he said. "Is anything the matter?"

"Do you know of anything that could permanently bind another's magic?" Merlin asked.

"Why do you want to know?" replied Kilgarrah.

"Because I can't bind Morgana's magic permanently," replied Merlin. "And I'd rather not kill her."

"You have the Witch?"

"Yes," said Merlin. "So do you know of any way to permanently neutralize her magic?"

Kilgarrah was silent for a few seconds, before he said, "There is a creature called the Gean Canah, which can drain the magic from a person permanently. However, it is hard to summon and control."

"If it can drain Morgana's magic, I'll control it," said Merlin determinedly. "Thank you, Kilgarrah."

"It is no problem, Merlin," replied Kilgarrah. With that, he launched himself into the air, disappearing from sight in seconds.


	22. Questions

When Merlin returned to the castle, he went straight up to Gaius's chambers, where the physician was puttering around mixing various potions.

"I take it you talked to Kilgarrah," said Gaius.

"I did," replied Merlin. "And now I just have more questions."

"Like what?"

"Like whether Morgana deserves to have her magic taken from her."

Gaius looked like he was about to answer, but Merlin kept on talking. "I mean...Kilgarrah said that there's a creature that could take Morgana's magic permanently, which would make her much less of a threat to Arthur and Camelot and wouldn't involve killing her. But living a life without magic...I wouldn't wish that on any magic-user. It almost seems crueler than just killing her." Merlin sighed. "I just don't know what to do, Gaius."

"I wish I could help you, my boy, but I am at just as much of a loss as you," replied Gaius. "But perhaps you should talk to other people about this."

* * *

Merlin walked down to Arthur's room, and knocked on the door. He heard Arthur call, "Come in," and entered.

Arthur was sitting at his desk, looking over some papers, and Gwen was standing behind him, rubbing his shoulders. Arthur smiled when he saw Merlin, and said, "You're back."

"Yes, and I have a question for you," replied Merlin. "There is a creature that could permanently get rid of Morgana's magic. The question is, should I use it to do so?"

"Why is that even a question?"

"Because it would condemn her to a magicless life." Arthur had a "so what" expression on his face, so Merlin continued. "Think of it like this- you have a choice between giving up your throne or dying. Which do you pick?"

Arthur was silent, and Merlin carried on. "Magic is Morgana's birthright, just like ruling Camelot is yours. Taking that away from her...that would be unbelievably cruel. Do you understand why I think that it's a question worth considering?"

"Yes," said Arthur. "And when you put it that way...I don't know."

* * *

What do you think should happen?


	23. Ultimatum

Merlin walked down to the dungeons. After a lot of thinking, he had decided to ask Morgana what she thought should be done about her. He didn't have much hopes that he'd get an answer beyond hoping he and Arthur would die, but he felt that she deserved the choice.

When he got to her cell, he found that Morgana was sleeping. "Morgana!" he hissed, but she didn't wake up.

Morgana, he called out mentally, and Morgana stirred on the bed, slowly coming awake.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"I want to ask you a question," replied Merlin. "You have a choice between being executed, or living a life without magic. What do you pick?"

Morgana felt a spike of fear at Merlin's cold tone. She looked at his face to see if he was being serious, but there was no emotion there.

"Let me think," she said.

"You have until we get back from rescuing King Rodor to think about it," said Merlin. "Goodnight."

"Wait!" Morgana called, and Merlin turned around. "What happens if I don't have an answer for you?"

"I think I'll let Arthur decide," said Merlin. "And honestly, I have no clue what he'd pick, so if I were you, I'd have an answer by the time we're back." With that, he walked off, leaving Morgana alone and terrified in her cell.

* * *

Merlin woke up early the next morning, and quickly went to Arthur's chambers. When he was serving dinner last night, Arthur had told him that Mithian was starting to worry about her father, so Arthur wanted to go as soon as possible to help rescue King Rodor.

Merlin wasn't sure what to do about Morgana. It was already getting hard to maintain the lock on Morgana's magic, and he wasn't sure if he'd be able to keep her magic suppressed at a distance. On the other hand, he couldn't leave Arthur to babysit Morgana, if Arthur would even allow him to do that.

Merlin knew that bringing Morgana with them would probably be the best solution, but he had no idea if Arthur would allow that to happen either. However, he reasoned that there was no harm in trying to ask Arthur if he could do that.

When he reached Arthur's chambers, bearing breakfast, he knocked, and came in at Arthur's command. Once he had served breakfast, he stood around, watching Arthur and Gwen eat.

Finally, Arthur noticed that Merlin was staring at him, and said, "Is something the problem, Merlin?"

"Yes," replied Merlin. "I think the only way to keep control over Morgana is to bring her with us on the rescue mission."

Arthur opened his mouth- probably to insult Merlin's intelligence- but Gwen spoke first, saying, "And why is that?"

"I don't know if I can control her magic if I'm far away from her, and I can't abandon you. So I take her with us, keep her magic under control, and probably keep her unconscious basically the whole time."

"That actually could work," said Arthur slowly. "I think we can try that then. Just remember, Merlin- if it messes up, it's on your head."

"Yes, Sire," said Merlin, smiling happily.


	24. The rescue, part 1

After he was finished packing, Merlin went back down to Morgana's cell. She was still sleeping, and Merlin took a moment to observe her. Her face held none of its usual malice in sleep. With a sigh, Merlin knocked on the cell door.

"Morgana, wake up," said Merlin. Morgana stirred, then sat up in the bed, her face becoming angry again.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"You're coming with us to rescue King Rodor," replied Merlin. "So get ready- we're leaving soon."

"I need clothes from the Princess's chambers," said Morgana.

"Then I'll escort you there," said Merlin. His eyes flashed gold, and the cell door swung open.

"You're powerful," said Morgana as she stood up.

"Of course I am," answered Merlin. "How do you think I've managed to survive this long?" He extended his arm to her, his smile slightly bitter, and Morgana took it.

Once they were at Mithian's chambers, Merlin supervised Morgana on what to bring. He caught her trying to smuggle stuff into her baggage twice. The third time she tried to do it, Merlin grasped her arm.

"Morgana, if you keep doing that, I'm going to ask Arthur to delay the trip so we can deal with you," he said. "Do you understand?"

"Yes," replied Morgana shakily. "I understand."

"Also, keep this in mind- if you screw up during this rescue mission, your fate leaves my hands for Arthur's. Is that absolutely clear?"

"Yes, Merlin," said Morgana.


	25. The rescue, part 2

Arthur was saddling his horse when Merlin walked over to him, with Morgana following him. "Good, you're here," said Arthur. "Where is Morgana going to be riding?"

"I think she should ride with me," replied Merlin. "If she had her own horse, she might try to escape. How long will this trip take?"

"It's no more than two days ride to the tomb," said Arthur. "Is that a problem?"

Merlin turned to Morgana. "It could be," he said. "I'm not sure I can maintain control over Morgana's magic for that long, in addition to helping you."

Morgana smiled slightly, but Merlin wasn't done talking. "However, another thing I could do is have someone else look after Morgana- maybe another druid or Kilgarrah."

"What could another druid do?" sneered Morgana. "I am a High Priestess."

Merlin and Arthur shared a look. "Kilgarrah then," said Merlin. "I could command him not to kill her, and Morgana- you may be a High Priestess, but I doubt all your magic would have much effect against the Great Dragon."

Morgana paled. Memories of hearing that Agravaine and his soldiers were dead flashed through her mind.

"In the meantime," said Merlin. "If I were you, I'd keep in mind that if you misbehave, Arthur gets to decide what happens to you."

Morgana nodded.

* * *

Morgana was sitting silently behind Merlin as they rode through the forest. At this point, her future didn't look so promising. She couldn't use her magic, and she would either be executed or have her magic taken away when she arrived back in Camelot. She couldn't summon Aithusa, but even if she did, Merlin would probably just command her- if he was powerful enough to have the Great Dragon answer to him, he was definitely powerful enough to make Aithusa obey him.

When Arthur called a break for lunch, he, Merlin, Mithian, and the knights quickly set up and lounged around in a circle, laughing and talking. Morgana sat outside of the circle, watching the rest of the people with some envy. She felt hungry, but she figured it wasn't worth the trouble of bothering the clearly happy group.

"Morgana."

She started, and looked up to see Merlin standing over her, holding a bowl of soup and some bread in his hand. "Aren't you hungry?"

"No," replied Morgana, just as her stomach growled. Merlin smiled sadly, then held out the soup and bread to her. Morgana set the soup on the ground and tore off a piece of bread to dip into the soup as Merlin sat beside her.

They sat in silence while Morgana ate, and then for a little bit afterward. Finally, Morgana said, "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?" answered Merlin.

"Give me food," replied Morgana.

"I really have no interest in making you suffer, Morgana," replied Merlin.

"Of course you don't," said Morgana bitterly.

"Why do you think you're still *alive*?" retorted Merlin angrily. "Because I advised Arthur not to kill you. I hate seeing people suffer, Morgana- even you." With that, Merlin got up and stalked angrily away, leaving Morgana sitting there in shock.


	26. The rescue, part 3

Merlin spent the rest of the ride to the tomb thinking. It would definitely be best if he could be with Arthur, but he didn't want to bring Morgana along. He could put her to sleep, but there was always the possibility that she could wake up and run away. Alternatively, he could leave her with Kilgarrah while he and the other raided the tomb, which would probably be the best idea. He could get Kilgarrah to tell him how Morgana behaved, which would help determine her fate when they got back to Camelot.

When they finally got close to the tomb, they all dismounted, picketing their horses. Merlin walked over to Arthur with Morgana.

"I think it would be best if we left Morgana with Kilgarrah," he said. "Because I don't want her to escape, and I don't want her to come with us."

"I don't see a problem with that," replied Arthur. "You'd probably be useful against Odin's men."

"Do I get any say in this?" asked Morgana.

"No," replied Merlin and Arthur simultaneously. They looked at each other, and Arthur chuckled, while Merlin smirked.

"Anyway," said Merlin, "So I'll just summon Kilgarrah and leave Morgana with him."

"Make sure you hurry," replied Arthur. "I want this over as soon as possible."

Merlin nodded, and walked quickly away, followed by Morgana. As they were walking, Merlin started to summon Kilgarrah. "O drakon, e mala soi ftengometh tesd'hup anankes! Erkheo."

Just as they reached a clearing, Kilgarrah landed. "Hello, Merlin," he said. "What do you need me for?"

"I need to help Arthur fight Odin," Merlin said. "Which means I can't afford to bring Morgana with me. Could you watch over her while I help Arthur?"

"I can definitely do that," replied Kilgarrah.

"Thank you," said Merlin, and hurried away.

* * *

Next chapter will be the actual rescue! Are you excited?

Also, which pairing should I put in the story? Merlin/Morgana, Merlin/Arthur/Gwen, or Merlin/Arthur/Gwen/Morgana?


	27. The rescue, part 4

Arthur, Mithian, and the knights were ready and waiting by the time Merlin got back. "Here Merlin, take this," said Arthur, tossing Merlin a sword, which Merlin caught.

"Why do I need this?" asked Merlin.

"I- well...I don't want you getting hurt on my watch," replied Arthur gruffly. He looked away, clearing his throat, then said, "All right, everyone, get in formation. Merlin, can you do anything to neutralize the guards?"

"Of course," said Merlin. "While I'm doing this, do you want me to tell you how many men Odin has?"

"Yeah, that would be helpful," said Arthur.

Merlin's eyes flashed gold, and for a few seconds he stared at the tomb. He turned to Arthur and said, "Odin has thirty men with him and ten men as guards, and King Rodor is inside with Odin."

Arthur smirked. "Okay. You take care of the guards, we'll deal with the rest of the men when we get in."

"Right," said Merlin, and he snuck away.

A few stressful minutes later, Merlin came back. "The guards are taken care of," he said.

"Good, let's go," replied Arthur, and the company advanced toward the tomb. Arthur, Merlin, and Mithian were in the front, followed by the knights, with everyone's swords out and ready.

They company advanced as quietly as possible down a corridor towards the center of the tomb. When they reached the central room, they found Odin, surrounded by soldiers, holding a sword to King Rodor's throat.

"Lay down your weapons," said Odin. "Or Rodor dies."

Arthur glanced over at Merlin, who nodded slightly. His eyes flashed gold, and the handle of Odin's sword started glowing red, and Odin dropped it with a cry of pain.

"On me!" yelled Arthur, and he and the knights charged at Odin and his men.

Arthur rushed at Odin, who backed up against a wall, grabbing hold of Rodor and using him as a shield. However, as Arthur watched, Rodor elbowed Odin in the chest, causing him to double over and release Rodor, who moved out of the way. Arthur took advantage of Odin's helplessness and placed his sword point on Odin's heart.

Merlin, who was busy blasting soldiers, looked for a second at Arthur and saw a soldier about to stab Arthur from behind. His eyes flashed gold, and the soldier flew through the air.

Within a few minutes, Merlin and the knights had knocked out or killed all of Odin's soldiers. Odin himself was still standing against the wall, Arthur's sword resting on his heart.  
Merlin looked at Arthur's face, which was full of barely-contained rage. Merlin hurried over and placed his hand on Arthur's shoulder.

Arthur swung around, his expression softening when he saw it was Merlin. He lowered his sword, and Odin lunged forward, impaling himself on Arthur's sword.


	28. The rescue, part 5

Odin fell to the floor with a gasp. Merlin turned to Arthur. "Should I heal him?" he asked.

Arthur was silent. A few seconds later, Merlin said, "Arthur. Do you want him to die or not?"

Arthur took a deep breath. "Not," he replied. "Heal him."

Merlin closed his eyes and stretched his hand over Odin's wound. "Þurhhæle dolgbenn," he muttered, and opened his eyes, which flashed gold.

At first, the spell seemed to have no affect, but within a short amount of time, Odin's breathing grew less labored, finally becoming normal.

"Why did you do that?" asked Odin weakly.

"Because I'm getting tired of constant bloodshed," replied Arthur. "I want to rule over a peaceful land, and killing you wouldn't help that." With that, he offered his hand to Odin, who slowly reached up and grasped it.

* * *

When they left the tomb, Merlin hurried off to find Kilgarrah. When he got to the meadow, Morgana was lying unconscious on the grass, and Kilgarrah's face was angry. "What happened?" Merlin asked.

"Evidently, your control over her magic waned enough that she tried to escape," replied Kilgarrah. "She started to attack me, so I knocked her out."

"Thank you, Kilgarrah," said Merlin. "I'll take her from here."

Kilgarrah bowed his head to Merlin. "Be careful, young warlock," he cautioned. "The Witch is powerful, and dangerous."

"Don't worry," said Merlin coldly. "She won't be a danger for much longer."


	29. The Gean Canah

Just as everyone was getting ready to leave, Merlin came back, an unconscious Morgana floating behind him. Merlin's face was set in a grim expression.

"What happened?" asked Arthur.

Merlin took a deep breath. "My control over her magic lapsed, when I was healing Odin, and she tried to escape. Kilgarrah knocked her out. Arthur...it's your decision as to what to do  
about her now."

"I- I don't know," said Arthur.

"Well," said Merlin with a sigh, "I'll keep her unconscious until we get to Camelot, because I don't know how to summon the Gean Canah."

"Okay," said Arthur solemnly.

* * *

During the ride back to Camelot, Merlin felt torn between his thoughts and emotions. Arthur would probably want to take her magic, and although logically Merlin knew that would be the best choice, another part of him kept insisting that he would be condemning Morgana to a fate worse than death.

Finally, they got back to Camelot. After Gwen and Arthur finished their rather enthusiastic greeting, Merlin walked over to Arthur.

"So what's your decision, Sire?" asked Merlin.

Arthur's face became serious. "Take her magic," he finally said.

* * *

Merlin brought a sleeping Morgana up to Gaius's room. After making sure she was soundly asleep, Merlin brought out his spell book and flipped through the pages, looking for anything about the Gean Canah. After a while, he finally found what he was looking for- a spell to summon the creature and use it.

"Aweax þu meteþearfende! Þicge þu þone drycræft þe þinan deorcan mode gefylþ," he said, his eyes flashing gold.

A spot above Merlin's outstretched hands started to glow white. It grew brighter and brighter until Merlin had to look away. There was a small explosion, and a large, dark, slug-like creature dropped into Merlin's hands.

Merlin placed the creature on Morgana's chest, and it slithered up to her face. A white mist started to seep out of Morgana's mouth and into the slug. The mist continued to move away from Morgana towards the Gean Canah for a few minutes, before the mist faded away, and Merlin let out a deep sigh. He had just taken away Morgana's magic.


	30. Magicless

Morgana opened her eyes, momentarily confused about where she was, then realized she was in Camelot- more specifically, in Gaius's room. She sat up and looked around, and saw Gaius asleep on his cot. It was probably night then, and she slowly got up and walked quietly towards the door.

"Hello, Morgana," came Merlin's voice from behind her, and she froze, her hand on the door. She turned around to see Merlin standing at the top of the steps leading to his room. "Going somewhere?"

Morgana sneered. "It's your business what I do now?" she asked.

"Well, I want to make sure you're adjusting all right," he replied.

"Adjusting to what?" she asked.

"Not having magic," he said gravely.

Morgana stared at him in shock. She reached for her magic, but nothing was there. It wasn't like before, where she could feel a block against her magic- there was just nothing. He'd taken her magic.

She sank against the door, rage and grief building inside her. She wanted to lash out, to destroy him in her fury, but she couldn't- she couldn't do anything except sob in anger.

She heard him walking over, and he sat down next to her. She glared at him through tear-stained eyes, but he just stared back at her, his face expressionless. His eyes betrayed belied his indifference, though- they were immeasurably sad.

"I'm sorry, Morgana," he whispered after a while.

"Sorry doesn't make anything better," she whispered harshly back.

"I know," he said. "But I still am sorry. I wish things could be different."

Morgana only glared at him in response. Eventually he said, "It's late, and you should get some sleep. Arthur will probably want to talk to you in the morning." With that, he got up and went back to his room, closing the door.


	31. In the morning

Merlin woke up early the next morning. He quickly got dressed and left his bedroom. Morgana was slumped against the door, fast asleep. Her face was still red from crying, and even in sleep, a slight frown lay on her features. Merlin's eyes flashed gold, and Morgana floated across the room to the cot, where he lay her. Merlin quietly left the room, and walked to the kitchen to get Arthur's breakfast.

When he got to Arthur's room, he knocked. He heard footsteps coming to the door, and the door opened, revealing Arthur's tired face. Merlin walked silently into the room, putting Arthur's breakfast on the table.

Arthur walked over to the table and sat down. However, instead of eating, he pushed the food away, and rested his head in his hands, closing his eyes.

"Arthur, did you sleep at all?" Merlin asked.

"A little," Arthur replied in a murmur. "Is Morgana..."

"I took her magic," said Merlin, equally quietly. "I wish I hadn't had to."

Arthur was silent. After a few seconds, Merlin asked, "So what should we do about her now?"

"I don't know," said Arthur. "At this point, it would be especially cruel to lock her up, but no one would approve of restoring her to her former status."

Merlin was silent for a few moments, then said, "Anyway, there's another issue concerning Morgana."

"Which is?"

"The dragon Aithusa," replied Merlin. "She and Morgana...they've formed a bond, but I hatched her- I...I need to know that someone is taking care of her. Maybe I should talk to Kilgarrah."

"You can do that tonight," said Arthur.

* * *

What do you guys think should happen to Morgana?


	32. Working

After Merlin was done with his chores, he went back to Gaius's room. When he entered, he saw Gaius cleaning the room, while Morgana was sitting on her cot.

"Do you need help with that?" Merlin asked Gaius.

"Sure," replied Gaius. "Would you mind scrubbing the top of the shelf?"

Merlin grabbed a washcloth and dipped it in a pail of water, then walked over to the bookshelf and started scrubbing it.

Merlin eventually felt someone staring at him, and turned around to see Morgana regarding him with an inquisitive expression.

"What is it?" Merlin asked.

"I'm surprised you're actually working," said Morgana.

"As opposed to...what?" replied Merlin.

"Using magic," answered Morgana, hesitating slightly on the second word.

"Oh," said Merlin. "Well, I guess not using magic to do work is just habit. Not only am I a servant, I live in Camelot."

"True," replied Morgana, and was silent. Merlin turned back to the shelf, and finished scrubbing it. When he was done, he turned to Gaius and said, "I'm going to go bring Arthur lunch now," and quickly left the room.

* * *

When Merlin got to Arthur's chambers, carrying his and Gwen's lunch, he knocked on the door. "Come in," Arthur called, and Merlin opened the door. He set the lunches down on the table, then said, "Can I talk with you?"

"Sure," said Arthur.

"It's about Aithusa," said Merlin. "Morgana's dragon. Do you think she could be brought back to Camelot?"

"Possibly," said Arthur. "Who would take care of her and stuff?"

"I'm not sure," replied Merlin. "I could definitely command her though."

"Well, if you do decide to bring her back, make sure you let me know," said Arthur.

"Okay," Merlin answered, and left.

* * *

When Merlin got back to Gaius's rooms, Gaius was gone, but Morgana was there, attempting to comb her wet hair.

"Morgana," said Merlin, and Morgana turned around.

"What?" she asked.

"How would you feel about seeing Aithusa again?" asked Merlin.


	33. The Isle of the Blessed

"What do you mean?" asked Morgana.

"I want Aithusa to live here," replied Merlin. "So, do you want to see her again?"

"Yes, but..." Morgana trailed off.

"But what?" asked Merlin.

"How- why do you want her here?" asked Morgana. "Why do you even care about her?"

"Because I hatched her," said Merlin. "And I want to make sure she's being taken care of."

"You do," said Morgana sarcastically. "Where was your *care* when she was a prisoner?"

Merlin blinked in shock. "Prisoner?" he asked.

"Of the Sarrum of Amata," sneered Morgana. "We were both kept in a pit for two years."

"I- I thought she was with Kilgarrah until I saw her with you," said Merlin. "I didn't know."

"I see," said Morgana coldly.

"Look, do you want to see her or not?" Merlin asked. "Because if you don't-"

"I do," interrupted Morgana. "I do want to see her. I'm worried about her."

"Do you know where she is?" asked Merlin.

"We went to the Isle of the Blessed," replied Morgana. "After the fortress at Ismere was destroyed."

"And you left her there," said Merlin, and Morgana nodded.

"Then get ready to go," said Merlin. "We'll be leaving in a few minutes."

* * *

"Where are we going?" asked Morgana, as Merlin lead her through the woods.

"To meet Kilgarrah," replied Merlin. "He'll get us to the Isle of the Blessed faster than horses would."

Morgana shivered. She was not looking forward to seeing Kilgarrah again.

When they got to a clearing, Merlin paused, scanning the sky. He didn't seem to find what he was looking for, as he sighed and sat down, with Morgana following suit.

After a few minutes, the silence of the forest was broken by the sound of giant wings beating, and as Merlin stood up, Kilgarrah swooped into the clearing.

"Hello, Merlin," he said. "What is it now?"

"We need to go to the Isle of the Blessed, to get Aithusa," replied Merlin.

"Very well, young warlock," said Kilgarrah, kneeling on the ground. "But remember- I am not a horse."

"I know- you're much too fast to be one," replied Merlin cheekily, as he strode over to Kilgarrah.

Morgana got up and followed Merlin as he climbed onto Kilgarrah, and sat down behind Merlin.

"You might want to hold on," Merlin said, and Morgana reached around Merlin to hold onto him. She was not a moment too soon, as Kilgarrah took off.

Morgana made the mistake of looking down, and felt a jolt of fear at the sight of the rapidly receding ground. She quickly turned to face the back of Merlin's head, too scared to look anywhere else.

Merlin seemed to be enjoying himself. "Woohoo!" he yelled. "Isn't this fun?"

"No," said Morgana, but Merlin only laughed.

After what seemed like an eternity, Kilgarrah finally landed, and Merlin slid gracefully off, Morgana following clumsily behind. After her head stopped spinning, Morgana looked around, and saw that they were at the shore of a lake. And there, through the mist- there it was. The Isle of the Blessed.


	34. AN 2

Hi everyone

I know I haven't updated anything in a while, and I'm sorry for that. However, in my defense, I was extremely busy with school and life in general.

I will continue updating the following fics: A lesson (in love), Arthur's choice, Pride and Prejudice and BDSM, Reason 17, Watching the videos, Welcome to Camelot, and Yer a wizard Blainey. I promise, I will update them (at some point). It might be a bit until I update, as I'm working on creating a fanvid rn, but I will probably start posting new chapters for these fics within a few weeks.

Have fun,

Miriam


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